Italian Wedding Soup
Made with the most perfectly tender, juicy, chicken meatballs! So hearty and flavorful. Not to mention, it’s simple, quick and easy!
I know. I really need to stop eating soup when it’s 100+ degrees outside.
But I can’t help it. I can’t.
I love soup 365 degrees out of the year, but I particularly love it during the summer.
With all the summer harvest and the perfectly juicy chicken meatballs, you won’t care about the heat outside.
You’ll just keep refilling your bowl, with extra meatballs and extra Parmesan, of course.
Oh, and the crusty bread to soak up all that hearty goodness. Nope, You can’t forget about that. It’s just as important as the soup.
Italian Wedding Soup
Made with the most perfectly tender, juicy, chicken meatballs! So hearty and flavorful. Not to mention, it's simple, quick and easy!
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 onion, diced
- 3 carrots, peeled and diced
- 2 stalks celery, diced
- ½ teaspoon dried thyme
- 8 cups chicken stock
- 2 bay leaves
- ½ cup uncooked acini di pepe pasta
- 1 sprig rosemary
- 3 cups baby spinach, chopped
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan
For the chicken meatballs
- ½ pound ground chicken
- ½ pound chicken sausage, casing removed
- ⅓ cup Panko
- ¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan
- 1 large egg
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ½ teaspoon dried parsley
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine ground chicken, chicken sausage, Panko, Parmesan, egg, oregano, basil, parsley and garlic powder; season with salt and pepper, to taste. Using a wooden spoon or clean hands, stir until well combined. Roll the mixture into 3/4-to-1-inch meatballs, forming about 25-30 meatballs.
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large stockpot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add meatballs, in batches, and cook until all sides are browned, about 2-3 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate; set aside.
- Add remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil to the stockpot. Add garlic, onion, carrots and celery. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 3-4 minutes. Stir in thyme until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Whisk in chicken stock and bay leaves; bring to a boil. Stir in acini di pepe, rosemary and meatballs; reduce heat and simmer until pasta is tender and meatballs are cooked through, about 9-12 minutes.
- Stir in spinach, lemon juice and parsley until spinach has wilted, about 2 minutes; season with salt and pepper, to taste.
- Serve immediately, garnished with Parmesan, if desired.
Did you make this recipe?
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This is amazing! Made the recipe just as written, except I tossed a parmesan rind into the soup since I had one in the freezer instead of adding grated. The lemon really makes this soup sing. This is a
definite keeper. Thank you!!!!
Awesome!
I loved this soup! I used ground pork and pork sausage instead of chicken because that’s what I had on hand. And I think I added an extra splash of lemon juice, but otherwise followed the recipe. It was really good!!
That’s great!
This was fabulous! The meatballs were tasty, veggies cooked perfectly, etc. You know it’s a winner when your kid is trying to steal spoonfuls as you’re putting it in a thermos for her lunch 😉
Awesome, Gwen!
This looks delicious and perfect for a fall day like today in New England! What kind of chicken sausage did you use? There are so many different flavors! Thank you 🙂
I actually did not use a particular brand – I found it at the meat counter at Whole Foods. 🙂
This looks darn good. I wonder the motive behind the name. Anyways, can tofu be used for this recipe? I think that would give it a different touch.
Yes, of course!
Would this work with ground pork? I have a pound of it in my freezer (Prime Now sent me the wrong item) and I have no idea what to do with it!
Yes, absolutely!
made the meatball soup and it was delicious !
It’s the best!
Is it possible to make this in the Instant Pot pressure cooker?
What a great idea! But unfortunately, without further recipe testing, I cannot answer with certainty. As always, please use your best judgment regarding substitutions and modifications.
This looks delicious! Do you think it would hold up ok if frozen? Thanks – Love your site!! Every time I make one of your recipes, it’s a winner 🙂
Yes, you can certainly freeze but I would recommend freezing without the pasta and cheese. Hope that helps!
That photo is making me so hungry! I have never seen that pasta before, really want to get hold of it and experiment with it. Thanks so much for sharing (:
This is a great recipe, especially since all the veggies are nice n ripe thanks to the summer sunshine! Gonna have to crank up the AC after eating some soup tho
What if you don’t use chicken sausage. How much total ground chicken would I use. This looks delicious
You can substitute the same amount for the chicken sausage. 🙂
This looks amazing. Would it make much difference in the meatballs if I only used ground chicken? I really don’t like any kind of
sausage.
Yes, that should work just fine! 🙂
Thank you! I have searched and searched for a Wedding Soup recipe and have not found one that I’ve even considered trying. I am definitely making this tonight! I don’t usually post until after I’ve tried a recipe but I just had to say thanks! I’ve tried enough of your recipes to just know this will be delicious!